


Powerless

by AliceMayWrite



Category: Parks and Recreation
Genre: Hurt/Comfort, Sickfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-02
Updated: 2020-07-02
Packaged: 2021-03-04 22:54:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,415
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25034278
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AliceMayWrite/pseuds/AliceMayWrite
Summary: Ron's not well, and it brings back some bad memories for Leslie.
Relationships: Leslie Knope & Ron Swanson
Comments: 2
Kudos: 3





	Powerless

**Author's Note:**

> I feel like the fact her Dad died isn't really touched on very often.
> 
> TW- parental death

Leslie burst into the hospital room, and Ron regarded her with an air of indifference, as usual. She was primed with bags upon bags of supplies, and there was a comfortable blanket under her arm.   
“RON!”   
“Leslie,” Ron winced, brining his hands up to his ears. “Do you mind?”  
“Sorry!” she stage-whispered. “Ann said you fainted- are you okay?!”  
Ron sat up in bed, and Leslie sat heavily beside him, dropping the bags on the floor with a thud.  
“I have the flu,” Ron explained, grimacing at the fact Ann would talk about his private life with literally the most energetic and caring person he knew.   
“I know, Ann told me,” Leslie replied instantly, and Ron sighed heavily.  
“Why are you here? Shouldn’t you be…”   
“I came to help you!” Leslie insisted with a wide smile. Then she frowned. “Ron, you look awful. Do you need any medicine? A hot drink?”  
“I’m in a _hospital_.”   
“Still!”

Leslie made a show of plumping up his pillows, before retrieving the blanket she had brought and throwing it over him. Ron looked down at the bags she had dumped on the floor.  
“What’s all this?”  
“Oh!” Leslie rummaged around before pulling out a packet of uncooked steak. “I know you like to hunt it yourself, but it’s the best I could find!”  
Ron looked at her, touched, before returning to his signature frown.  
“One day you will need to learn how to fend for yourself, Knope. I may purchase from Food and Stuff, but I have knowledge of the wilderness alongside that. It’s important for survival.”  
Leslie rolled her eyes. “Sure, Ron.”   
“Why have you done that?” he asked her. “Getting all this for me?” Leslie grinned.  
“Because! I know Diane is out with the kids seeing their grandparents, so I know that you, _Ron Swanson_ , are going to be alone this weekend.”  
“That is… correct.”  
“I also know that Ben and Chris are having a boy’s night tonight since Chris hurt himself today- long story- and I wanted them to have a good time. And since you did it for me- it’s only right I’d return the favour and keep you company!” She paused. “Not that I wouldn’t keep you company if you hadn’t already. I’m just saying.”

Ron groaned. It was one thing to keep an eye on Leslie when she was unwell- while it had been a rather stressful weekend, he could handle a subdued Leslie. But with he in this current state and Leslie in her prime- that might be too much to deal with.  
“Thank you,” Ron said sincerely. “But I think I’ll pass. You may accompany me to my door, but then I would like to sleep for several days. No service required.”  
Leslie hesitated, before looking down briefly. Ron wouldn’t have caught it if Leslie was like an ordinary person, but even one tiny lapse in cheeriness was an anomaly.

She recovered quickly, however, seemingly battling between what was appropriate and what was too much. She had had many conversations with her friends over the years about what was too far, and maybe she was finally starting to listen.   
Lovely though she was, Ron had nearly fired her four times. Of course, he had retracted that notion four times as well, but that was a different matter.  
“Fine,” Leslie gave in, sighing a little. “As long as you take everything I’ve supplied, and you let me drive you home.”   
“Fine,” Ron agreed bluntly. “I will allow it. Now leave so I can get dressed.”

Leslie scampered out of the room, and Ron got dressed- slowly and methodically, as he always had. It was then that he heard slightly panicked voices from outside the door and down the corridor.   
Ron prided himself on both his keen sense of smell and hearing- with being a hunter, he had to have totally heightened senses. And while he may be missing a certain number of toes- he had the ears of a bat. Ron walked to the corner of the room, by the door, and listened in.

“You’ve just got to accept that he doesn’t want your help, Les.”  
That was the voice of the irritatingly perceptive Miss Perkins. Ron didn’t have many opinions on her, as he didn’t for many people that he associated himself with, but he did know that she could see through pretty much anything. The perfect foil for Leslie.  
“I know, I know. It’s just…”   
That was Knope. Sounding very put out. Ron’s ear pricked up.  
“…I remember how it was when my Dad died. And not being able to do anything about it, it was… well, I’ve told you how it was.”  
Leslie let out a long sigh, and Ann made a noise of sympathy.

“I know, Les. It’s hard. But Ron isn’t that sick, I promise. I’ve discharged him myself; he just needs bedrest and to take the medication prescribed. He’ll be fine.”  
“I know, Ann- you’re the best, most beautiful nurse in the universe. I just hate when all those feelings rush back. I feel like I’m a powerless ten-year-old again, I… I just wish I could make sure he was okay. Even if he is, just so those feelings go away…”  
Leslie cut herself off with a shaky gasp, and that was when Ron turned around and went to sit on the edge of his bed. He thought for a minute or two, then he made a decision, and then he was getting up and marching out of the room.

He turned to see Leslie and Ann, down the corridor as he had suspected. Leslie was wiping her eyes, but very quickly stopped doing so upon seeing him. Ann was frowning, but she put on a small smile.   
“Ron!” Leslie said with as much eagerness as she could muster. “You look ready to go.”  
“Indeed,” Ron muttered. “Although, I can’t help but be troubled by the thought of you purchasing store bought meat when you need to learn how to do it yourself. I insist you come with me back to my house and I can show you how to do it properly.”  
Leslie’s eyes lit up, and Ron caught Ann’s eyebrows skyrocketing in surprise.   
“Are you sure?” Leslie asked, grinning. Then she frowned- it was like her face was a cartoon, always reacting to everything. “This isn’t because you feel worse, is it? Ann- Ann- check his temperature-”  
“That’s not it,” Ron promised. “You may come to the cabin and I can show you how to hunt meat.”

Leslie’s grin was back. Ann was squinting at Ron, but Ron ignored her.  
“Oh, Ron, this is great!” Leslie squealed. Then she frowned again- god, were her emotions on random? “Wait, no, you’re sick. I think you should take it easy tonight. Maybe we can do it tomorrow? Yeah- that works. I’ll stay at yours tonight and then we can start early tomorrow, how does that sound?”  
Ron glanced at Ann, who he figured had officially figured out the situation.  
“Fine, I’ll allow it. Let’s leave.”   
Leslie ran back into his room to grab the many, many supplies she had brought with her. Ron turned to Ann and nodded ever so slightly, prompting Ann to grin.

“That was nice,” she said to him sweetly. Ron rolled his eyes.  
“Don’t question it.”  
“I’m serious- and I’m glad she’s going with you. She’s a good person to have around when you’re ill.”  
“I don’t doubt it.”  
“One time I felt under the weather, she stayed on my sofa for three days. Every morning I woke up and there was fresh fruit and the house was spotless…” Ann paused to take a wistful sigh. “She’s really the best.”  
“That sounds intrusive.”   
Ann just laughed.

***

Ron fell asleep as soon as they returned to the cabin. Leslie busied herself unpacking the supplies, then she cleaned the entire place from top to bottom, making sure it was sanitary enough for Ron in his sick state. When she realised that that had only killed approximately twenty-three minutes, she set about preparing dinner.   
Ron emerged from his room looking well rested, if a little pale, at around six in the evening.

“I smell meat.”  
“Ron!” Leslie said, turning to give him a dazzling smile. Ron nodded slightly.  
“I see you’ve been busy. There’s a fresh coat of paint on the bathroom door.”  
“Oh, yeah,” Leslie said breezily. “I’m here to help you!”   
“The gesture is appreciated, but unnecessary,” Ron promised. Leslie just laughed.  
He didn’t want to let on that he had overheard her fears. To be honest, the fact that she considered him close enough in her life to associate with that of her father was touching. He hadn’t put a label on their friendship, and while it was more of an older brother/younger sister affair, he couldn’t deny to himself the level of kinship there.  
"I've made you meat but with _lots_ of vegetables!"   
Okay, maybe they weren't that close.

They sat down to eat and were having a light conversation when Ron started to feel his headache coming back. He was about to ask Leslie to pass him his pills, which were at the other end of the table, when suddenly she was handing him both a glass of water and the pills.  
“You’re spacing out,” she explained softly. “I think after this it’s back to bed, yeah?”  
“Agreed,” Ron muttered, taking the pills without another word.  
Leslie cleared the plates, and then her hand was gently touching his arm.

“Ron?” she asked him softly.   
This was a side to her that he rarely saw- the quiet side. He much preferred her this way, come to think of it. One of his main pet peeves- or rather, things he utterly detested, were people who made any noise that was above standard speaking volume.  
“Present,” he said gruffly, and she chuckled.  
“I know. I was going to ask if you needed anything?”   
Ron shook his head, before standing. He felt a slight headrush, but then Leslie had her hand on his arm, keeping him in place with a surprising amount of strength.  
“Come on,” she said kindly. “Let’s get you to bed.”

***

Ron was asleep again, and Leslie sent Ben a quick text updating him. Ben was pretty drunk, and she doubted that the precious lightweight would be awake much longer. The two wished each other a cheery goodnight, but then Leslie was alone, and it was only half eight in the evening.   
She debated calling Ann but that would risk Ron waking up, and besides, Ann had been on shift all day, she was undoubtedly exhausted.  
Leslie sat down on the sofa and looked out the window at the setting sun.   
She remembered her Father- quite well, in fact. There had been parts of him she didn’t like- like when he had a loud voice or argued with her Mum. But there was a softer side to him that she had always cherished- those little shared moments they had, that had made all of it worthwhile. He had been a good man and seeing him deteriorate at such a young age was something Leslie desperately pretended to brush off, but it was hard.

She didn’t realise the tears were coming until they were dripping onto her jeans. She laughed at herself, wiping her eyes, and was going to carry on with whatever it was that was going to keep her busy for the next five hours until she got her four hours sleep, but then a little voice in her head said:

_Just cry. Let it out._

That was when choking sobs racked her body, and for the first time in a _long_ while, Leslie was actually letting herself cry about her past trauma. Sure, it would be nice to have Ben there to help her through, but it actually felt good to be alone with her emotions and let it out.  
Ron was fine. He wasn’t going to end like how her Father had. Calm down.  
But now the tears wouldn’t stop, and it felt like they would never end.

“Am I interrupting?”  
Leslie jumped out of her skin, and turned to see Ron standing in the doorway of the bedroom, his expression unreadable. Leslie sniffed loudly.  
“I’m sorry, Ron, did I wake you up?”  
“Correct. I thought you might be trapped under something heavy, or maybe shot in the side, since you sounded like an injured deer.”  
“Sorry.”  
Ron edged closer, like she was some kind of live explosive, eventually opting to sit next to Leslie on the sofa, keeping his distance. Leslie sniffed loudly, wiping her eyes.

“Sorry.”  
“You’ve already said sorry.”  
“Oh. Sorry.”  
Ron sighed, before reaching out to squeeze her shoulder. “What’s wrong?”  
“I…” she sighed loudly. “I don’t know. Hospitals. Sick people. It reminds me of my Dad.”  
Ron nodded slowly. “That’s understandable. My own father passed in a hospital- going against his wishes of being a live water burial.”  
Leslie snorted in surprise. “Is that a thing? Is that legal?”  
“It is not.”

Leslie wiped her eyes again, laughing a little.  
“I’m genuinely sorry I woke you up. And if I’ve been a little crazy. I’m trying to tone it down.”  
“It’s fine.”  
The two sat in companionable silence for a while.  
“For what it’s worth,” Ron said, breaking the silence. “You may have felt powerless in the past, but that’s no longer the case. In fact, I think you’ve been very… useful. You’re a good nurse, Knope.”  
“Not as good as Ann.”  
Ron harrumphed. “It’s been nice having you around. You’ve looked after me.”  
Leslie smiled at him, but he could see it was a sad smile.  
“I’m sure your Father would be proud of you,” he added, and was subsequently unsurprised when she threw herself at him, hugging him tightly.

“Right!” she said in a motherly tone. “Back to bed- if you want to show me how to hunt properly tomorrow, you need to get your rest.”  
“Yes ma’am,” Ron replied with a mock salute.   
Leslie watched him return to his room with a smile, before letting out a contented sigh. Sure, she had been powerless in the past. But that was far from the case now. And if Ron had told her that, it must be the truth. She relished having him as her friend, and she was more than happy to look after him when he was down, as he would do for her.   
That’s what friends are for.  
  


  
  



End file.
